DUTCH maestro Edgar Davids kept his place for a Championship debut for Palace at Glanford Park, but he could do nothing to stop his side going down to a 3-0 defeat against Scunthorpe.

Centre back Claude Davis returned to the starting line-up but Darren Ambrose was still missing through injury.

Palace battled well in the early stages against a Scunthorpe side still looking for their first home points of the season.

Keiran Djilali should have given the Eagles a flying start after only three minutes when he nipped past full-back Cliff Byrne into the box, only to lash his left foot shot high and wide with only keeper Joe Murphy to beat.

Palace had to re-shuffle after 32 minutes when skipper Patrick McCarthy limped off to be replaced by new loan signing Jonathan Obika from Tottenham.

Obika went up front alongside Pablo Counago, with Alex Marrow dropping into the middle of the back four.

A minute later it was Scunthorpe who took the lead when a quickly-taken throw on the right found striker Jonathan Forte on the right edge of the box and he turned well to fire a left foot shot into the far corner past Julian Speroni.

Scunthorpe struck again on the stroke of half-time when Forte snatched his second of the game, crashing a shot on the turn past Speroni, this time at his near post, after doing well to control a ball into the box from Michael O'Connor.

The home side continued to dominate the second half, with only a last ditch challenge from Davids denying striker Chris Dagnall.

Speroni denied Forte the chance of a hat-trick, advancing quickly off his line to narrow down the angle.

Scunthorpe missed a great chance to make it 3-0 when midfield man Sam Togwell blazed wide with the goal at his mercy.

But Scunthorpe did strike again in the 71st minute when Michael O'Connor crashed a penalty past Speroni after a foul by Nathaniel Clyne on Forte.

Scunthorpe: Murphy, Byrne, Mirfin, Jones, Nolan, O'Connor (Woolford, 83), J Wright, Togwell, Collins, Dagnall (Grant, 84), Forte. Unused subs: Slocombe, A Wright, Raynes, Boyes, Canavan.

Palace: Speroni, Clyne, Davis, McCarthy (Obika, 32), Davids, Danns, Garvan, Marrow, Djilali, Counago (Andrew, 90), Cadogan (Dorman, 71). Unused subs: Price, Barrett, Parsons, O'Keefe.